Thursday, February 6, 2020

State of the Game: Converting from Flash

Hey Poptropicans, it's time for some important housekeeping!

As pretty much all of you know, the support of Flash is being permanently discontinued this year. However, Poptropica isn't going anywhere! The screenshot that you see above isn't actually taken from the live game. It's from the HAXE JavaScript build that our developers have been working on since last year. It's a HUGE undertaking for a small team like Poptropica, and they've been doing an AMAZING JOB!

So, what's gonna change on the player side?

Pretty much nothing.

Same art style. Same islands. Same Poptropica! As many of our older fans know, there were two different Flash engines that previously ran Poptropica. In technical terms, they are called AS2 and AS3. Some members of the community might know them better as Old School and Sound Updated islands. Our main task right now is converting every AS3 island.

We want to emphasize that the Old School islands are still on the table! But the code that built them is so old that they would need to be remade from the ground up if we were to re-insert them into the live game. We've seen this rumor quite a bit, so we'd like to put it to bed: They will definitely not be playable when the JavaScript build launches.

Believe me, I miss Astro Knights and Skullduggery SO MUCH. But the most important and most exciting takeaway from losing Flash is that Poptropica will remain playable for everyone for years to come!! We can only thank our amazing community for making this game stand the test of time when, as we all know, so many browser games from the 2000's and 2010's are disappearing. With that in mind, we want to say a great big THANK YOU to all of you for your enthusiasm for exploring new waters and patience as we make all of these not-so-flashy updates that make sure this game stays solid.

We will be sure to let you guys know when the open beta is live, and we'll be setting up special rewards for players who try it out! I just got done with another testing session, and the graphics and gameplay are super sharp. We can't wait to share it with you!

Omg that one used to terrify me! It stressed me out so much I never even got a quarter of the way through it but hopefully they'll re-release it and I can get all the way through. Same with twisted thicket.

how long/hard is it to update/remake the older islands. i played a long time ago and was very young when i played. i recently gotten back to it but since i was so little when the other islands were out i never really got the full experience. liked Astro-Knights and the superhero one i hope that those get remade onto here. also would everything be converted to poptropica worlds?

This game was my childhood! Thank you guys for working hard to preserve it. I enjoy still playing this a little bit to this day because it brings back so many memories. It's also a little sad to see some old islands go but I know we're all thankful that Poptropica won't be disappearing.

So glad Poptropica is here to stay! It was and still is my lifeeeee. I'm sad about the Old Islands, but I understand how much work goes into creating these islands, so no rush, but I hope they will be back someday.

Thank you all so much for working so hard so we can get entertained by this AMAZING game <33 we really appreciate it. Please please PLEASE add back the amazing old school islands as soon as one of them is finished converting!! Wait so when you said they will definitely not be playable when the javascript launches, you mean they will never return? Or simply that the old ones will not be playable once it launches on the old platforms?

Using the original code for the islands will be impossible. After they are done converting the existing islands to the new platform they will have to write completely new code for the old school islands, which means they wont be out for a long time but we can expect them! Hope this helped :)

Oh my gosh I just want to say thankyou so so much! I've literally been playing poptropica for years and when logged into the site awhile back to find out some of my favourite islands were gone i was incredibly disapointed. However now I am extremely pleased! I can't wait to play old poptropica again!! Thankyou thankyou thankyou!!!

Been playing since 2006 and I'm sad to see more of the older islands go but I'm so happy to hear that poptropica will be sticking around!! Seen it change so much of the years and hopefully it will keep changing for the better!

So excited, as a poptropica veteran I am upset that you have to redo all the code... but I will wait patiently! Get the top priority done first then you guys can work on bringing back the good ol days :)

Im so sad. Ive been playing this game since i was a literal child (like 4-5 years old). I reme,ber all the old islands and im devestated that they arent in the game anymore. I get that its because of the old code and because you would have to build it all again, I just wish there was something us veteran players could do to help you recreate our old memories. I trust that you guys will make our dreams come true at some point i just cant wait to see the day where that is a reality. Keep doing you and if we as the poptropica community can do anything to bring poptropica back to its golden time, then i think i speak for everyone in saying that we will do anything to make it happen. Thank you devs for working so hard and i just hope poptropica can have new and old islands in the future. :)

I have been playing poptropica for about 12 years, and i love playing new islands and re-playing previously completed islands. All i can say is i really hope the islands come back soon, when they islands were taken some of my favorite islands went with them. I miss the old poptropica...

Yes! I remember my old sister and I playing the Great Pumpkin Map oh so long ago, and it's great that those old maps are still on the table! I have still been playing on them with the old island directory, too. So I can wait for what comes in the future!

I absolutely adore this game. I've been a player for about 8-9 years. I first came across it on a funbrain ad :) I signed up right away.Super power island, 24 carrot, and Nabooti island were the first islands I've ever played. I remember me and my cousins made it a challenge to see who could beat the most islands. I still reign victorious at 32 completed islands. I always wanted a membership but my mom would never cave in lol. It makes me really happy to see that Poptropica is still up and running with future plans to come. This game made my childhood amazing and the problem solving and skill and effort put into this game is both unique and legendary. Ii can't wait to see what's in store.

you could add a few and make them sound updated like 24 carrot, time tangled, mythology, shrink ray, and poptropolis games. (my suggestions are Astro Knights, counterfeit, reality tv, steamworks, game show, and Back Lot)

I'm glad the islands aren't gone for good. I look forward to being able to play them again one day. I'm a veteran player who has played since 2010. I hope all goes well for the developers! If you need any beta players, I'd be happy to play!

Is it not possible for you guys to enable the previous islands while flash is still active for those of us who want to play it? Flash hasn't been deactivated yet, and I don't see why you must keep them hidden, for lack of a better word.

Thank you so much for clearing this up!! I was scared the classic islands were gone for good. I haven't played Poptropica in forever so I wanted to experience all the islands again over the quarantine. Hope you guys are able to re-code the old islands and bring them back better than ever :)

I miss the old worlds, but I have hope you'll find a way to get them back! I remember playing Poptropica in 4th grade computer class, I was always so excited fo new worlds and winning games. I decided to come back, I am a bit disappointed, but its reasonable for what happened.

I love this game. I have been playing ever since you guys first created Poptropica, and I was extremely upset when I logged back on for some nostalgia and saw that many of the beloved islands I played as a kid had disappeared. Im so happy that the Poptropica team is willing to put in the effort to rewrite the entire scripts for the older islands. This gives me hope! Thank you guys for keeping my childhood alive

Devs, we all appreciate your grueling work as you convert some islands to the new format. Poptropica was a big part of my childhood and I've gotten disconnected after a while because of school and work. I was surprised it was still up and played Shrink Ray island with a wave of nostalgia, remembering Time Tangled, Pelican Rock, (I think it was Bigfoot island or smt), skullduggery, and more. I wouldn't mind seeing these old islands again after a while instead of brand new ones. Just know that we're fully backing you up and eager to relive those long forgotten days.

Ok I was worried for a minute, I was like huhh what happen to the poptropica maps, then I did research that said the old islands need to be fixed, so take your time we all will still be waiting here for the updates

While it is unfortunate that the Old Islands have to be taken down to be restructured, at least the new ones still remain. It's just sad that a lot of the newer ones don't have the same depth and Poptropica heart like the Old Islands. Good luck with it all, and here's to future Poptropica Islands.

P.S. Is it possible to get the Old Island style maps back? I'd rather have a map full of question marks than a shortcut to the Blimp

Thank you for the update! I know it will be a lot of work, but I do think that remaking the old islands will be worth it, I'd do anything for that piece of my childhood back. It would mean a lot to all of the fans, I know. So please, if you can, I really think you should.